Hanshi Raymond L. Montoya was an active police officer in Bryan, Texas, for 27 years. He was involved in training and recruiting and was a Pressure Point Control Tactics (PPCT) instructor. Currently, he holds the following martial arts ranks:

I was at an impasse trying to find an activity my son, Hunter, would enjoy. I tried the usual sports and scouts with no sign on light in his eye. He came home one day from school with a flyer and was very excited about taking a Karate class. As I do with just about everything my kids want to do, I researched. I called a few schools and found that they offered classes similar to each other and I wasn’t impressed. I even ended up in an argument with a Black Belt from one of the schools. I asked a friend and he recommended that I go to this seemingly unknown building in Bryan behind the Municipal Golf Course. It actually only said Karate on the building. As many passers by do, I judged the book by the cover, but we went in because I had to, he saw the sign!!

The welcome we received was far above what I expected. We were exposed to a class that was well disciplined and motivated. Instructors with belt levels of all different ages training others. I felt at home and very comfortable. My son was bouncing off the walls with excitement!

Time has gone by since that day and nothing has changed! Hunter is promoting up and we both attended this past weekend’s Retreat, I saw so much respect for Hanshi Montoya’s abilities and not to mention rank!! As of Monday, I am now one of his students!

If you are looking for a place to take your kids or want to learn REAL Martial Arts, I recommend coming by and taking a look. The price is the lowest in town, not due to lack of training, Hanshi Montoya teaches from the HEART not pocket book!

Buying a home in Bryan or College Station, it is great to have a place to relieve stress, have a place for your kids to go and learn something they can use for the rest of their lives. Aggieland is blessed to have such a place like Montoya’s.

Driving through the twin cities a couple weeks ago, Bryan and College Station, it was not unlikely that you ran upon a lemonade stand or two. These small makeshift stands littered the city and were stationed upon many street corners and in front of numerous bigger businesses. Star wars characters greeted some customers, while enthused young girls in yellow shirts and bows sold lemonade to others. There were kids who chose to blow bubbles to draw in his customers, while other kids opted for large booths with loud music to draw in attention. And of course, there was the always traditional modest sized lemonade stand and signs operated by some.

When kids were asked what they were going to do with the money they earned, some replied they were going to “spend it!” Others decided to give the money they raised to their church. The main point is that the children learned how to work for money and learned that they had the freedom to decide what they were going to do with the profit they earned. They were allowed to feel grown up and allowed a taste of the real world. This type of experience excites children and allows them the freedom to make decisions for themselves.

Sunday May 6 was Lemonade Day in 31 cities across America and Canada, including Bryan and College Station. When Lemonade Day first began, it included about 2,700 kids. Now, more than 120,000 kids across these 31 cities participate in the day. Lemonade Day was started as a program to give experience to children, teaching them entrepreneurship skills. Kids learn to plan, start, and operate a business through their experiences with Lemonade Day.

Kids were offered the chance to mark their lemonade stands on a map online that would be available to the community on Lemonade Day. The stand locations were given the opportunity to be published not only to the online map, but also to Facebook, Twitter, and via email.

The goal is to prepare children to be empowered future citizens. Upon registering, each child received a backpack that contained an Entrepreneur Workbook, teaching them 14 lessons that are a central part of Lemonade Day. They learned how to create budgets, how to set profit-making goals, how to serve customers, how to repay investors, and how to give back to the community. In addition to learning how to perform these skills, they also learned the value of the skills. The children are also taught how to set goals for themselves, how to problem solve, and how to gain self-esteem which will aid them in their future endeavors for success.

On Lemonade Day, children are allowed to keep all of the money that they make and are encouraged by adults to spend some of their money, save some of it, and share some of it with others less fortunate.

Lemonade Day teaches kids a very special and specific set of skills from financial literacy and economics, to college readiness and career, to life skills and personal development, and of course academics. The financial literacy and economics that the kids learn include subjects like capital equipment and consumables, supply and demand, credit, debt, gross and net income, marginal utility, return on investment and compound interest. To prepare kids for college, they are exposed to critical thinking and collaboration, interest in attending college, civic responsibility, customer service, teamwork and problem solving and presentation skills and design. Children also learn life skills and personal development such as leadership, the belief that attaining goals is within reach, personal productivity, self-direction and time management, social responsibility and charity, high order thinking and social skills and self confidence. The day also increases the kids’ academic capacities such as math calculations, reading and interpreting data, and oral and written communication.

Lemonade Day offers an online website for kids to register and sign up on. Lemonade Day sponsors and partners include many businesses and individuals in the area, including Dick and Linda Lester, Lenae Heubner, Atmos Energy, Double Dave’s Pizzaworks, James and Paula Lancaster, Research Valley, Len and Nancy Berry, Mathnasium, Caldwell Companies, AgniTEK, Wells Fargo, Research Valley Funds, Blue Baker, Documation, Copy Corner, Kroger, Ecolyse, Brazos Valley Small Business Development Center, College Station ISD, Bryan Broadcasting, The Eagle, Chamber of Commerce, Bryan ISD, Sideshow Creative, the City of College Station, KBTX Media, Brazos Monthly, KAMU, Mays Business School, AbouTown Press, KAGS, and the City of Bryan.

If you like to help out with and work with children, then you may want to consider becoming a volunteer for Lemonade Day. Volunteers are necessary to run Lemonade Day and are needed to stuff backpacks that are given out to the children to teach them entrepreneurship, spread the news about Lemonade Day by distributing materials to local schools and youth organizations, register youth to participate at special events going on in the community, and lastly you can help out by blogging, tweeting, or sharing information about Lemonade Day online or through Facebook!

Soft music playing in the air, the buzz of the local people around you, artists on corners of the street, antique shops, modern art galleries, and family entertainment mix together on the first Friday of every month in downtown Bryan.

From 5-10 p.m. downtown Bryan offers First Friday, an event for the cities of Bryan and College Station and surrounding areas to join together and have an enjoyable evening. Whether your evening consists primarily of dining out and visiting with friends or bringing the kids along for a carriage ride and movie, the choice is yours.

Madden’s Casual Gourmet is a popular favorite spot for dinner. All of their food is made from scratch, including every soup and mayonnaise on the menu. Chef Madden is constantly seeking to widen the variety on his menu and challenging himself to find additional flavorful combinations for customers. Madden’s uses top quality products and their presentation of food is nothing short of artistic. The restaurant strives to provide only the freshest ingredients for their customers. Relationships with local producers and manufacturers, as well as a garden of their own, provide Madden’s with top quality food. Madden’s also hosts a movie night for families on First Friday. Movies such as Alice in Wonderland, Thumbelina and the Blind Side have been played in the past.

Wine bars and coffee houses are hotspots at any time in downtown Bryan but take on a certain quaintness on First Friday. The Village Downtown Read the rest of this entry »

As an Aggie Realtor who works with clients all over the US, I constantly hear Aggie jokes, but who is laughing now? We always talk about how we live in a bubble here in College Station, but did you know that bubble was filled with the smartest people in Texas?

The City of College Station is ranked by The Business Journals as the brainiest city in Texas among those with populations between 50,000 and 100,000. Some 28 percent of College Station residents hold a bachelor’s degree and another 28.23 percent have a graduate or professional degree. A lot of this has to do with Texas A&M faculty as well as so many Aggies staying here after graduation!

The Business Journals ranked 483 mid-sized U.S. cities using 2009 U.S. Census Data. The rankings were based on the percentage of population with each level of educational attainment. Not only were we #1 in Texas, but College Station ranked No. 31 nationally.

So, next time someone makes an Aggie joke, make sure and let them know that they are actually making fun of the smartest city in all of Texas!

The saying that Bryan/College Station is in a bubble is pretty true to an extent. While the rest of the country has high unemployment rates, lower retail sales, and a housing crunch, Bryan/College Station is an area that trends better than a majority of the country! I have sold more homes this year than I did last year, so I know that we aren’t hurting too bad in B/CS!

Unfortunately a lot of times we don’t realize that there are those in our community who don’t know where their next warm meal will come from, where they will sleep, or if their children will be warm enough this winter! We don’t see it a lot, but it does exist more than you could even imagine!

This year, my kids and I decided that we would like to help those who are less fortunate than the majority of us in Bryan/College Station. We have started a coat/blanket drive in Castlegate with the donations going to the Twin City Mission! What started as a small project has taken flight. My daughter and I printed out about 100 fliers and asked a few of her friends to help us pass them out in our subdivision! The kids have all gotten so into it that it has amazed me! They just light up when people ask about how to donate! Now it is on the Castlegate website and on Facebook!

It’s very simple if you want to get involved! We are taking donations at 2445 Newark Circle today from 4-6 and tomorrow 9-11 am! All you have to do is drive up to the curb and we’ll grab them from you. If that time isn’t convenient, you can call me at 979-229-0919 and we can pick them up. You can also drop them by the Century 21, Beal offices located at 404 H University Drive East at your leisure.

The kids are waiting to take your Coats and Blankets to give to the less fortunate!

We have a lot to be thankful for Aggieland, so let’s get out there and make this winter a little warmer for our Brazos Valley Neighbors!

When I am out there showing properties in Bryan/College Station, I hear tons of rumors and ideas about growth in our community. Lately there have been many rumors about what is going on towards the back of Castlegate in south College Station. Since I sell a lot of homes in south College Station as well as living there myself, I wanted to get the real scoop so I could be knowledgeable when my clients ask me about what is going on in Castlegate. I went straight to the horses’ mouths, and interviewed Wallace and Dusty Phillips of Castlegate Communities to find out more about the new development!

[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Wv3O_dxvRp4[/youtube]

For more information about Castlegate and any home in Bryan/College Station, give me, Farrah Spears, a call at 979-229-0919.

It is here, Aggieland! The Boot Campaign Starts today! I do it with my boots on, and you should too! Starting today, stop by the Century 21, Beal office located at 404 H University Drive East, show your student ID and pick up your free “I do it with my boots on” maroon t-shirt to be worn at the game Saturday, November 19th! What better way to support our troops past and present, than to wear your maroon “I do it with my boots on” t-shirt to the game! Hope to see you there!

Today is Veteran’s Day, which is a day that makes us all reflect on the sacrifices our troops past, current, and future have made for our freedom! We are so blessed to live in a country where we are free all because of the selflessness of those who have chosen to serve. Today is a good day for me to announce my participation in the Boot Campaign. The Boot Campaign is a grassroots initiative started by five women from Texas known as the Boot Girls. The campaign provides an easy and tangible way for Americans to show appreciation for troops (both past and present), raise awareness of the challenges they face upon return and donate funds to charities supporting their transition home. Proceeds from boot sales are donated to partner charities, who assist returning veterans and active troops dealing with emotional, mental and physical issues.

Their mantra is…”When They Come Back, We Give Back!” What better way to say thank you to our troops this Veteran’s day than sporting a pair of boots just like theirs? So join in the growing chorus of musicians, entertainers, athletes and other celebrities and get YOUR boots on! I laced up my boots in support and and next week, November 14-19th, you can support the campaign in various ways!

1. If you are a student, stop by my office at 404 H University Drive East(beside Cenare and across University Drive from the FOX and Hound) and show your student id for your FREE “I do it with my boots on” T-shirt to be worn at the game on November 19th. My office is open Monday-Friday 8:30-5:30.

2. Stop by the photo booth in front of the giant Aggie Ring on game day(November 19th) and join the national Boot Campaign facebook movement. *Surprise Aggie celebs will be there!

What better way to say thanks this Veteran’s day than to Walk a Mile in Their Boots and support our troops! Click on the link to find out more about this year’s Aggieland Boot Campaign! http://www.bootcampaign.com/aggie.html or give me, Farrah Spears, a call at 979-229-0919! Thanks again Veterans! God Bless America!

Every 3 minutes, a woman in the US learns she has breast cancer. This effects all of us as we all have women we love. As you are more than likely aware, October is breast cancer awareness month, and the perfect time to get the word out to every woman you love that they need to perform a monthly breast self exam as well as schedule a mammogram every year after age 40. There are numerous events and shows of support going on this month. Earlier this month, was the Surviving and Thriving luncheon in B/CS, and many professional athletes have been donning pink to spread the word!

My friend and Mary Kay Sales Director, Ashley Virnau, told me about something she and Mary Kay are doing to raise funds to go towards breast cancer research via the Mary Kay Ash Foundation. It’s simple, all you do is lend your face, receive a complimentary facial, and a donation will be made to the Mary Kay Ash Foundation! Also, for every Party held within Ashley’s unit, they will donate $20 to the Mary Kay Ash foundation! This is a win/win as you get to have an amazing facial while supporting something that will one way or another effect us all!

The pumpkins have arrived so the 6th Annual Aggie Habitat for Humanity Pumpkin Patch is almost ready to go. All during the month of October Aggie Habitat will be selling pumpkins to raise money to help build homes for those in need in the Bryan and College Station area. They will be open as long as they have pumpkins. The hours are from noon until dark on weekdays, 8:00 a.m. to dark on Saturday and 10:00 a.m. to dark on Sunday. During the weekends, Aggie Habitat will host several special events for children including face painting, apple bobbing, and storytelling. Pumpkins of all shapes,sizes and colors will be available. The Pumpkin Patch is located in College Station in front of Covenant Presbyterian Church on the corner of Rock Prairie and Edelweiss Drive near Wellborn Road. Get out and support Aggie Habitat for Humanity.